Is it Cause Marketing or Corporate Social Responsibility? | iContact

“Cause marketing” and “corporate social responsibility” (CSR) often are mistaken for each other. While they both promote social good, they aren’t the same thing. CSR can be thought of as an umbrella under which a number of business practices, causes, and initiatives like cause marketing fall.

Because it isn’t immediately clear how the two terms differ from each other, it can be helpful to look at examples of them in action.

Gap’s action, while responsive to issues and causes deemed as priorities in America, is not cause marketing. It is a socially responsible act that ostensibly could result in increased sales and brand favorability. As Cone Communications notes, customers are more likely to spend money at stores that are invested in social and environmental concerns.

CVS

Another company focusing on social good and responsibility is CVS. The pharmacy announced it would cease selling tobacco products by October 2014. CVS says the decision is based on where they see their company going as a “retail clinic” in the future. They also note that selling tobacco products while promoting a smoking cessation program is a conflict of interest.

The action is not cause marketing; the pharmacy is making an operational decision because of its mission and values. While the company expects a slight drop in sales, they have a positive outlook because they are being true to their brand values. They also know that their own smoking cessation program will help make up some of the lack.

Brawny Towels

Brawny Towels, in contrast to Gap and CVS, is an example of cause marketing. The company partnered with the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) in 2012 to create the “Inner Strength” campaign, which encompassed mass media, social media, and the in-store experience. The company’s and the cause’s goals were simple but measurable: bring attention and donations to the cause and increase awareness and sales for the Brawny brand.

Both Brawny and the WWP received the results they desired. At the end of 2012, Brawny had raised over $549,000 for the WWP and had increased sales by almost ten percent. The partnership was such a success that the two partnered again in 2013 and raised another $650,000. They plan to continue their joint effort throughout 2014.

HEB

HEB, a grocery store chain popular in Texas, is another example of cause marketing. It often joins already existing cause campaigns, such as the “Souper Bowl of Caring,” a national, youth-led movement that aims to fight hunger and poverty in local communities and to transform “the time around the Super Bowl into the nation’s largest celebration of giving and serving.”

HEB’s cause marketing campaign, unlike Brawny’s, was mostly in-store. Customers could purchase pre-packaged bags of non-perishable food items, or they could make a cash donation at the register by using $1, $3, or $5 scan-tags. The most recent partnership with the Souper Bowl, along with other partners’ efforts, resulted in over $4 million of cash and food items being collected within the state of Texas and donated to food banks.

Cause Marketing or CSR?

Cause marketing finds its primary aim in supporting a cause. Increased sales and brand favorability simply are perks of either supporting an existing cause campaign, such as the “Souper Bowl of Caring,” or of creating a new partnership and campaign as in the case of Brawny and the Wounded Warrior Project.

CSR, in contrast, is focused on “good” but accomplishes that goal through a change in operational practices. Gap is increasing its minimum wage. CVS will no longer sell tobacco products. Both actions are business practices fueled by a desire to meet existing needs within the company “family” or to only promote products and services that align with brand values.